Insomnia Gaming Festival announced on March 3, 2026 that Insomnia 74 (i74), which had been scheduled for April 30 to May 3 at the Staffordshire County Showground, has been cancelled. The organizers published the update on X in their official announcement here.
An update on Insomnia 74 pic.twitter.com/G087AMjd11
— Insomnia the Gaming Festival (@IGFestUK) March 3, 2026
The statement says the team was unable to secure the sponsorship and exhibitor support required to run the event at its new location. The organizers also cited rising production costs and said that going ahead would have meant delivering what they called “a lesser version of the festival.” Ticket holders and exhibitors will receive a full refund. The organizers said refunds will be processed over the next seven to ten days.
They added: “Every member of this team has poured months of work into making i74 a reality. We always said that if we brought Insomnia back, we would do it properly. Delivering a half-measure – a festival without the exhibitor presence, the spectacle, and the quality that people expect – would have been a disservice to the community that has supported this event for a quarter of a century.” Insomnia 74 had already confirmed six esports tournaments as part of the event. VALORANT, Overwatch, Counter-Strike 2, League of Legends, and Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare were listed with a £3,000 prize pool each, while Rocket League was listed with a £2,000 prize pool.
Insomnia began in 1999 and ran for 25 years across venues including Newbury Racecourse, the Telford International Centre, and Birmingham’s NEC. Previous editions supported grassroots esports initiatives and staged higher profile tournaments, including CWL Birmingham in 2018, as documented on Liquipedia and the CWL Birmingham page on the Call of Duty esports wiki at Fandom. After closing in 2024, Insomnia had announced a planned return for 2026, but the organiser says that return will now be postponed while it waits for a healthier sponsorship market and renewed investment in live events.
The cancellation affects the Staffordshire County Showground dates of April 30 to May 3 and the confirmed tournament line-up and prize allocations listed above. Ticket and exhibitor refund processing is the immediate next step for the organiser. Share thoughts in the comments about which confirmed tournament is most affected by i74’s cancellation and what organizers should prioritize for any future return.
